Cutting press

ABSTRACT

A cutting table is movably mounted on a frame for reciprocal movement between two positions, and a cutting die is positioned to overlie one position of the cutting table. A cutting board which is mounted on top of the cutting table comprises a plurality of rectangular sections which are positioned in sideby-side relationship in a substantially flat tray. The rectangular sections are fitted loosely enough into the tray so that they can be moved from position to position to present an altered cutting surface to the cutting die. An eccentric shaft driven by a chain is mounted on the cutting table and engages the cutting board to cause minor shifting of the cutting board when the chain is moved. The chain engages a ratchet which is positioned to engage a pawl on the frame. The pawl moves the ratchet and thereby shifts the position of the cutting board every time the cutting table is reciprocated between its two positions.

United States Patent [.191 Vallier [52] U.S. Cl 83/437, 83/266, 83/562,83/563, 83/658 [51] Int. Cl B26d 7/20 [58] Field of Search.....' 83/266,558, 557, 556, 562, 83/561, 563, 658, 437

[5 6] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,375,935 4/1921 Sawyer,Jr. 83/562 X 1,404,831 1/1922 Buckner 307,731 ll/1884 Rowe 83/658 X2,680,484 6/1954 Stuck 83/562 X 1,082,669 12/1913 winkley 83/557 X Jan.29, 1974 Primary ExaminerJ. M. Meister Attorney, Agent, or FirmArthur L.Morsell, Jr. et al.

[5 7] ABSTRACT A cutting table is movably mounted on a frame forreciprocal movement between two positions, and a cutting die ispositioned to overlie one position of the cutting table. A cutting boardwhich is mounted on top of the cutting table comprises a plurality ofrectangular sections which are positioned in side-by-side relationshipin a substantially flat tray. The rectangular sections are fittedloosely enough into the tray so that they can be moved from position toposition to present an altered cutting surface to the cutting die. Aneccentric shaft driven by a chainis mounted on the cutting table andengages the cutting board to cause minor shifting of the cutting boardwhen the chain is moved. The chain engages a ratchet which is positionedto engage a pawl on the frame. The pawl moves the ratchet and therebyshifts the position of the cutting board every time the cutting table isreciprocated between its two positions.

7 Claims, 6 Drawing Figures PATENTEU JAN 2 9 974 SHEET 3 BF 3 CUTTINGPRESS BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION This invention relates to cuttingpresses such as used to die cut relatively thick stacks of paper to formenve lope blanks or the like. In the past, difficulty has beenexperienced in such cutting presses with regard to the surface againstwhich the cutting die presses. This surface became rapidly grooved fromconstant cutting action of the die in the same place, which caused suchrough die cuts that the lowermost blanks from a stack of die cut blankshad to be thrown away. In the past, the only correction for thiscondition was to trim the side of the cutting board so that the diewould hit in a slightly different spot. This, of course, still createdrough cuts at the points where the die crossed the old grooves in thecutting surface, and it also reduced the life of the board by constantlyreducing the usable cutting area.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In'accordance with this invention theabove-noted problem is overcome by providing actuating means on thecutting table, means on the cutting board engaged by said actuatingmeans for causing shifting of the cutting board when the actuating meansis operated, and means on the frame positioned to engage said actuatingmeans to thereby cause operation thereof each time the cutting table ismoved away from the cutting die. As a part'of the present invention, tostill further extend the life of the cutting board it may also beoptionally made of a plurality of rectangular sections which arepositioned in side-by-side relationship in a substantially flat tray.The rectangular sections are fitted loosely enough into the'tray'so thatthey may be shifted from position to position to present a changedcutting surface to the cutting die, the rectangular sections beingpreferably square so that their positions can be changed 90 at a time,and also being reversible to further extend the effective life of thecutting board.

One object of this invention is to provide an improved cutting board fora cutting press.

Another object of this invention is to provide a cutting board which ismade of a plurality of rectangular sections that are held in a tray andare movable with respect to one another.

A further object of this invention is to provide a means for shifting,the position of the cutting board of a cutting press in between cuttingoperations to present an altered cutting surface to the cutting diebefore each cutting operation. I

An additional object of this invention is to provide a cutting boardshifting mechanism in which movement of the cutting board away from itscutting position is utilized to shift the position of the cutting boardbetween cutting operations.

Another object of this invention is to provide a cutting board shiftingmechanism in which a ratchet and pawl, which is actuated by movement ofthe cutting board away from its cutting position, moves an eccentriccoupling that shifts the position of the board.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a perspective view ofacutting press utilizing one illustrative embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 2 is a plan view of one illustrative cutting board and boardshifting mechanism of this invention;

FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view of the ratchet and pawl mechanismshown in FIGS. 1 and 2;

FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view of one eccentric couplingmechanism shown in FIGS. 1 and 2;

FIG. 5 is an exploded perspective view of a second eccentric couplingmechanism shown in FIGS. 1 and 2; and

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the cutting board shown in FIGS. 1 and 2showing how the cutting board sections can be moved to present a freshcutting surface to the cutting die.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION Referring to FIG. 1, the novelcutting board and board shifting mechanism of this invention is utilizedin combination with a cutting press 10 having a hydraulically actuated,vertically operable cutting die 12 which is laterally-movably mounted ona horizontal frame member 14. A cutting table 16 is movably mounted onhorizontal frame members 18 and 20 and is moved by any suitable meanssuch as a hydraulic ram whose cylinder 22 is coupled to verticalframemembers 24 and whose piston rod 26 is coupled to a bracket 28 on thebottom of cutting table 16. A cutting board 30 is movably mounted on topof the cutting table 16 by means of a board shifting mechanism whichwill be described later. A stack of paper 32 is placed on top of cuttingboard 30 and is aligned and held in position by means of paper guides 34and paper clamps 36. Paperguides 34 and clamps 36 are mounted on hollowbases in order to allow a chain 76 to pass therethrough for reasons thatwill be explained later, the bases elevating the chains somewhat.

The hydraulic means which operate the cutting die- 12 and cutting table16 are preferably programmed by means not shown to make a plurality oflaterally shifted cuts in the stack of paper 32 to cut out as manystacks of envelope blanks as is practical from the size of the sheets inthe stack. At the end of the cutting operation, the cutting table 16 andcutting board 30 are moved forwardly out from under the cutting die 12so that the stacks of die cut envelope blanks can be unloaded. After theforward movement (to the left in FIG. 1) stops, the stack of papercontaining the die cut envelope blanks is slid onto an unloading table,which is not shown in the drawings, and a fresh stack of paper 32 isplaced on cutting table 30. The cutting table 16 is then movedunderneath the cutting die 12 again, and the cutting operation isrepeated.

This invention is concerned with the fact that the cutting die 12 cutsinto the surface of cutting board 30 at the lower end of its cuttingstroke and leaves an impression in the surface of cutting board 30.After several cuts in the same position, the impression becomes a groovewhich causes rough cuts in the bottom sheets of paper which lie adjacentto the surface of cutting board 30. To alleviate this condition, thisinvention provides two features: (1) a cutting board shifting mechanismwhich shifts the position of the cutting board 30 by a relatively smallamount after each cutting operation to present a fresh cutting surfaceto the cutting die; and (2) a novel cutting board which is made ofrectangular sections that can be moved relative to each other to presenta fresh cutting surface to the cutting die. Although these two featurescan be used independently of each other, they are related in the sensethat they are directed to the same end, feature (2) further prolongingthe life of the cutting board.

Referring to FIGS. 1, 2, and 6, the cutting board 30 comprises aplurality of rectangular sections 38, square in the preferredembodiment, which are fitted in sideby-side relationship into a shallowtray 40. The sections 38 are fitted loosely enough into the tray 40 sothat they can be moved from position to position to present freshcutting surfaces to the cutting die 12. The arrows in FIG. 6 illustrateone method of moving the sections 38 from position to position. Thesection 38 in the lower left corner is removed from tray 40 and thesection 38 to the right is moved into its place. Each adjacent section38 is then moved by one position as indicated by the arrows in FIG. 6,which ultimately leaves an empty position in the upper left corner oftray 40. The section 38 which was removed from the lower left corner oftray 40 is then placed in the upper left corner. Such a shift ispreferably made once a day. Since there are 20 sections 38 which areinvolved in the abovenoted shift, the shift can be made 20 times beforethe sections 38 return to their original configuration. At that point,the sections 38 can be rotated 90 and then shifted 20 more times. Therotation can be performed 3 times. Then the sections 38 can be turnedover and shifted 80 times again. This process extends the lifetime ofthe cutting board 30 by a factor of 160, which provides a substantialsaving in cost and also a substantial improvement in the quality of theenvelope blanks that are cut on the cutting board 30.

The board shifting mechanism which shifts the position of cutting board30 between cutting operations utilizes the reciprocal movement ofcutting table 16 away from cutting die 12 to cause minor shifting of theboard. A ratchet 42 and sprocket 44 (FIG. 3) are rotatably mounted on astud shaft 46 projecting upwardly from the cutting table 16. The ratchet42 and sprocket 44 are suitably linked together so that they rotatetogether. The ratchet 42 is rotatably indexed by contact with a pawl 48which is mounted on a frame element 40 and is spring loaded by a springelement 52. As best shown in FIG. 2, the table movement is suitablyadjusted so that the pawl 48 engages the ratchet 42 to advance theratchet one tooth after every complete cutting operation of the cuttingdie 12.

The rotary movement of ratchet 42 and sprocket 44 are translated into ashifting of cutting board 30 by means of an eccentric coupling mechanismby which the cutting board 30 is linked'to the cutting table 16. As bestshown in FIGS. 2, 4, and 5, an arm 54 having a slot 56 is rigidlyattached to the lower left hand portion of the tray 40 of cutting board30. Slot 56 engages a pin 58 which is eccentrically mounted on a doublesprocket assembly 60, comprising two .concentric sprockets which arekeyed together. The double sprocket assembly 60 is rotatably mounted ona shaft 62 which is rigidly attached to cutting table 16. The bottom ofdouble sprocket assembly 60 is linked by an endless chain 64 (FIGS. 1and 2) to the sprocket 44 which is attached to ratchet 42. Therefore,each time ratchet 42 is indexed by pawl 48, chain 64 indexes sprocketassembly 60, thereby moving eccentric pin 58 and shifting the positionof cutting board 30 due to the engagement of eccentric pin 58 in slot56.

The rear corner of cutting board 30 (toward the cutting die) iseccentrically coupled to cutting table 16 by means of a bracket 66 (FIG.5) which is rigidly attached to the right hand corner of tray 40.Bracket 66 has a journal bearing 68 rigidly attached thereto. Journalbearing 68 receives an eccentric pin 70 which is attached to a sprocket72. The sprocket 72 is rotatably attached to a shaft 74 which is mountedfor rotation on the cutting table 16. An endless chain 76 (FIGS. I and2) links the sprocket 72 to the upper sprocket of double sprocketassembly 60 (FIG. 4). Therefore, when ratchet 42 is indexed by pawl 48,the indexing movement is transmitted by means of chains 64 and 76 toeccentric pin 70, which causes a shifting of the corner of cutting board30 due to the engagement between eccentric pin 70 and journal bearing68.

The overall shifting movement of cutting board 30 is a composite of thecircular movement caused in one corner by the engagement of eccentricpin 70 with journal bearing 68 and the somewhat different linearmovement caused in the other corner by the engagement of eccentric pin58 with slot 56. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art thatdifferent shifting movements can be provided forcutting board 30 byvarying the nature of the eccentric couplings.

In order to maintain the same relative position of each stack of paper32 in spite of the shifted position of cutting board 30, the joggingsurface of the paper guides 34 and paper clamps 36 are built out as faras the predetermined diameter of the circular motion of cutting board 30caused by eccentric pins 70 and 58. The clamps 36 must have an extension37 welded onto their tips which is equal in length to the diameter ofthe circular motion of cutting board 30. Care must be taken whenextending the length of clamps 36 that the additional length ofextension 37 does not reduce the clamp pressure to a point where theclamp will no longer effectively hold the paper. Care must also be takenthat the length and width of the cutting board 30 plus the diameterofits circular motion does not exceed the available length and width ofthe press.

From the foregoing description it will be clear that this inventionprovides an improved cutting board for a cutting press and an improvedboard shifting mechanism for the cutting board. And although thisinvention has been described in connection with one specific embodimentthereof, it should be understood that the invention is not limited tothe disclosed embodiment since many modifications can be made in thedisclosed structure without changing its essential principles. Forexample, although the disclosed embodiment uses chains to transmitmotion from the ratchet and pawl to the eccentric mechanisms, it will beclear to those skilled in the art that other motion transmitting meansmay be used. This and many other modifications of the disclosedstructure will be apparent to those skilled in the art and thisinvention includes all modifications that fall within the scope of thefollowing claims.

I claim:

1. In a cutting press having a frame, having a cutting die movablymounted on said frame, having a cutting table movably mounted on saidframe for reciprocal movement toward and away from said cutting die,having a cutting board movably mounted on said cutting table, and havingmeans for pressing said cutting die against said cutting board to diecut material which is positioned on said cutting board. the improvementcomprising actuating means on said cutting table, means on said cuttingboard engaged by said actuating means for causing shifting of thecutting board when the actuating means is operated, and means on theframe positioned to engage said actuating means to thereby causeoperation of said actuating means each time the cutting table is movedaway from said cutting die. i

2. The improvement defined in claim 1 wherein said actuating meansincludes a ratchet wheel rotatably mounted on said cutting table andwherein said means on the frame comprises a pawl attached to the frameand positioned to engage said ratchet and rotate it each time saidcutting table is moved away from said cutting die.

3. The improvement defined in claim 2 wherein said actuating means andsaid means on said cutting board engaged by said actuating means includeeccentric means coupling said cutting board to said cutting table.

4. The improvement defined in claim 3 wherein said eccentric meansincludes a sprocket rotatably mounted on the cutting table and whereinsaid ratchet wheel has a sprocket attached thereto, there being anendless chain connecting said two sprockets to transmit motion from saidratchet wheel to said eccentric means.

5. The improvement defined in claim 2 wherein said means on said cuttingboard engaged by said actuating means comprises a slotted bracketattached to said cutting board, and wherein there is a first sprocketjournalled to said cutting table having an eccentric pin engaged in theslot of said slotted bracket, there being a second sprocket coupled tosaid ratchet wheeland movable therewith, and a first endless chainconnecting an eccentric pin engaging said second bracket, a fourthsprocket attached to said first sprocket and rotatable therewith, and asecond endless chain connecting said third and fourth sprockets,

7. In a cutting press having a frame, having a cutting die movablymounted on said frame, having a cutting table movably mounted on saidframe for reciprocal movement toward and away from said cutting die,having a cutting board movably mounted on said cutting table, and havingmeans for pressing said cutting die against said cutting board to diecut material which is positioned on said cutting board, the improvementcomprising means for causing automatic shifting of the cutting boardincluding shifting means on the cutting board, operating means on theframe, and cooperating means between said operating means and shiftingmeans responsive to movement of the cutting table for causing minorshifting of the cutting board each time the cutting table is moved awayfrom said cutting die.

1. In a cutting press having a frame, having a cutting die movablymounted on said frame, having a cutting table movably mounted on saidframe for reciprocal movement toward and away from said cutting die,having a cutting board movably mounted on said cutting table, and havingmeans for pressing said cutting die against said cutting board to diecut material which is positioned on said cutting board, the improvementcomprising actuating means on said cutting table, means on said cuttingboard engaged by said actuating means for causing shifting of thecutting board when the actuating means is operated, and means on theframe positioned to engage said actuating means to thereby causeoperation of said actuating means each time the cutting table is movedaway from said cutting die.
 2. The improvement defined in claim 1wherein said actuating means includes a ratchet wheel rotatably mountedon said cutting table and wherein said means on the frame comprises apawl attached to the frame and positioned to engage said ratchet androtate it each time said cutting table is moved away from said cuttingdie.
 3. The improvement defined in claim 2 wherein said actuating meansand said means on said cutting board engaged by said actuating meansinclude eccentric means coupling said cutting board to said cuttingtable.
 4. The improveMent defined in claim 3 wherein said eccentricmeans includes a sprocket rotatably mounted on the cutting table andwherein said ratchet wheel has a sprocket attached thereto, there beingan endless chain connecting said two sprockets to transmit motion fromsaid ratchet wheel to said eccentric means.
 5. The improvement definedin claim 2 wherein said means on said cutting board engaged by saidactuating means comprises a slotted bracket attached to said cuttingboard, and wherein there is a first sprocket journalled to said cuttingtable having an eccentric pin engaged in the slot of said slottedbracket, there being a second sprocket coupled to said ratchet wheel andmovable therewith, and a first endless chain connecting said first andsecond sprockets.
 6. The improvement defined in claim 5 and furthercomprising a second bracket attached to another portion of said cuttingboard, a third sprocket journalled to said cutting table under saidsecond bracket having an eccentric pin engaging said second bracket, afourth sprocket attached to said first sprocket and rotatable therewith,and a second endless chain connecting said third and fourth sprockets.7. In a cutting press having a frame, having a cutting die movablymounted on said frame, having a cutting table movably mounted on saidframe for reciprocal movement toward and away from said cutting die,having a cutting board movably mounted on said cutting table, and havingmeans for pressing said cutting die against said cutting board to diecut material which is positioned on said cutting board, the improvementcomprising means for causing automatic shifting of the cutting boardincluding shifting means on the cutting board, operating means on theframe, and cooperating means between said operating means and shiftingmeans responsive to movement of the cutting table for causing minorshifting of the cutting board each time the cutting table is moved awayfrom said cutting die.